Behind the Scenes at Adored Bride – A Personal Post

Okay, so I’m just going to come out with it. I have seven year old triplets. There, I said it.

That’s them being themselves at my in law’s wedding. They really know how to be themselves, no hiding from it! When I started the blog in January, finding my voice, I was worried that if I let the world know that I was a mum, that revealing the real me was in some way not going to align with ‘the brand’. Silly really as it has no bearing on the dedication I have for this blog, for weddings and my styling work.

I am a mum, Adored Bride is my job and my passion alongside Pretty Creative my styling business. But first and foremost with no competition, I am a mum to three amazing creatures. Amazing, funny, infuriating, exhausting, creative, joyous, demanding, bright, wonderful creatures. Any of you who are parents, particularly if you run your own businesses from home with children will understand that it is a constant juggling act. That we are exceptionally dedicated people but that sometimes life happens. It does not mean we are unprofessional, in fact we are the guys you need on your team. We are usually pretty amazing at logistics, thinking round problems and finding creative solutions to make stuff happen…we get on with stuff in the face of adversity and it’s often sticky chocolate covered fingers.

I never laughed so hard as when the kids gatecrashed that dad being interviewed live on TV, it was my life. We all have our ‘live on tv’ moments. The first week of half term my phone went, it was an important call that I wasn’t expecting..I thought, ‘I’ll quickly take this, the kids are in another room, will be fine”. BIG MISTAKE. As I answered at that very moment the kids came screaming into the kitchen in triplicate demanding the ice-cream I’d promised them. NOW, right now! No, not in a minute mummy, right now, as I gently tried to slide their little collective advance away from the freezer, with one arm while trying to hold the phone and conversation with the other.

My kids can sense my panic, the weakness and go for the kill. Never has there been so much background noise in the history of a phone call…ever. Period. Never. I stepped outside the kitchen door, shoe less and in the rain to try and finish the call. They promptly locked me out to show their disgust at my lack of mini chocolate magnum and fab lolly provision.

Trying to keep up with the cool kids was always going to be a silly race to enter. Yet I think it’s normal for parents to feel that they may be viewed as unprofessional, unreliable if they admit to needing to be there for their kids. Raising triplets is pretty full on and I do my best to be super human, but I need to admit I’m not, I live in the real world and sh*t happens. This sh*t got real a few weeks ago and left me playing serious catch up.

Life gave me a ruddy great nudge and reality check, forced my hand, outed me so to speak, to make me admit the wonder woman outfit is just a disguise. Working as your own boss, working from home is amazing, but equally it’s a balancing act and the scales tipped full towards being a mum. Four days after the two week Easter holidays (which its almost impossible to work through anyway) all three of the kids got chicken pox.

Not just any old chicken pox, oh no, the proper no sleep, dangerous temperatures, visits to A&E, copious antibiotics and 5 trips to out of hours docs kind of chicken pox. It started on the 28th of April and without a break, one after the other overlapping with the hideous pox, finally ending on the 25th of May, 28 days later…..isn’t that some zombie film? How appropriate, as I felt pretty post apocalyptic as we got through the 5 weeks (7 if you include surviving Easter) just 2 days before the two week half term break. Perfect.

The panic building, screaming internally at the lack of time I had to do my work, something I had no control over, I had to explain what was going on. Reflecting on the past few weeks, I realise it’s okay to tell the truth, to admit I’m a mum, to explain why things have slipped. We’re all humans. The crucial things, the immovable things happened. I didn’t let anyone down horribly. I still helped my friend with her wedding day that we’d been planning for a year, I supplied all the elements of a styled shoot I’d promised and I made it to London for White Gallery (on 4 hours sleep)…but still I was there! I was there for my kids. So anyone else out there that has had a few weeks like me, I know I’m not alone, give yourself a break, we’re human, you are doing a great job.

So hello I’m Rebecca, (you can call me Becs, Becca, Becci) I love my kids, I love weddings, I love this blog, I write from the heart. I’m totally dedicated to supporting amazing wedding suppliers and inspiring awesome couples. Beautiful photography that shows real life, that inspires, that celebrates diversity is what I’m about. I just ask you to spread the word about Adored Bride and enjoy the blog and occasionally I might ask for your patience when real life happens behind the scenes. You’ll often find me late at night answering emails, sometimes I might go a bit awol for a day or two, it’s not because I don’t care, it’s because I do.